LulzSec hackers plead guilty

Trent Nouveau, 25th June 2012

Two British hackers linked to LulzSecurity pleaded guilty to a number of computer crimes in London's Southwark Crown Court today.

Ryan Cleary, 20, and 19-year-old Jake Davis (aka Topiary) said they were guilty of conspiring with other members of LulzSec to attack numerous websites, including the CIA, News International, Nintendo, Sony, the Arizona State Police and Britain's National Health Service.

Two other defendants - 25-year-old Ryan Ackroyd (aka Kayla) and an unnamed 17-year-old - pleaded not guilty to the same charges and are slated to face trial in April 2013.

All four defendants denied two counts of encouraging or assisting others to commit computer offenses and fraud.

In addition to the above-mentioned charges, Cleary also pleaded guilty to providing hackers with 'jacked networks for use in massive (DDoS) attacks and infiltrating the Pentagon's heavily guarded cyber perimeter by installing and altering server files.

Meanwhile, Cleary attorney Karen Todner once again reiterated that her client suffers from Asperger's Syndrome, pledging to rebuff any initiative to extradite him to the United States. However, despite Todner's concern, it appears highly unlikely that Cleary will actually be extradited to the States, as the US prosecutor has gone on record as saying the accused LulzSec hacker should be dealt with by British courts.

Cleary - detained back in June 2011 - was subsequently charged with five hacking related offenses against three UK websites, including Britain's Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca), the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and the British Phonographic Industry.

At the time, Cleary's arrest was linked to a series of cyber campaigns led by the enigmatic LulzSec, which successfully infiltrated websites administered by the CIA, US Senate and Sony.

LulzSec suffered a major blow in March 2012, when evidence provided by none other than the group's de-facto leader Sabu (aka Hector Xavier Monsegur) led to the arrest of several high-level members in Great Britain, Ireland and Chicago, including Ryan Ackroyd (Monsegur's top deputy), aka "Kayla" and Jake Davis, aka "Topiary," (previously detained) both of London; Darren Martyn, aka "pwnsauce" and Donncha O'Cearrbhail, aka "palladium," both of Ireland; and Jeremy Hammond aka "Anarchaos" of Chicago.